A Face In The Hall
by DesperateThoughts
Summary: Professional Basketball player, Justin Timberlake, finds himself depressed and dissatisfied with life after a major injury on the court leaves his career and his future up in the air. An unfortunate event forces him to return home & come face to face with his past...A past that he had tried to bury for 10 years. Will he be able to salvage what he once cherished?
1. Chapter 1

"Come on babe." the sexy voice from the bedroom beckoned.

"Gimme a minute, I just need to take care of something."

"Hurry up…We're getting lonely," she purred.

Justin looked over towards the bedroom and could see the two women, clad in their bras and panties, giving him their best come hither looks, asking him to join them in bed. He didn't need much more encouragement than that. He quickly took the brace off his knee and popped two pain killers and washed them down with what was left of his beer.

He got to the bedroom door and had to stop when he saw them sprawled out seductively across his king size bed. He had met them a few hours earlier at a night club launch party the team had been invited to. He barely had to chance to catch their names before the two women started discussing a ménage à trois. Shit, if you were to ask him their names now, he wouldn't be able to tell you. He didn't care. Justin was just thankful for the distraction.

He inched his way into the room, pulling his t-shirt over his head and tossing it on a nearby chair as he watched them. They were teasing one another - Running their fingertips up and down the lengths of each others' stomachs. Justin reached the end of the bed and placed his hands on the smalls of their backs and brought his face in closer to theirs, taking in their fragrance. Giving them both a cocky grin, he softly whispered, "Kiss" and found a spot on the bed between them.

Justin grabbed a pillow and propped up his head as he watched the two blondes let their tongue's dance together, moaning in pleasure. He took in the sight that lay in front of him, a beauty on each side of him, playing with each other's breasts through their bra's. He let his hand run up their thighs and continued to watch the two women seduce one another. Justin's eyes fluttered shut when he felt their tongues on each side of his neck.

* * *

Green eyes penetrated his skin, sending shivers up his spine. He held out his hand, trying to reach for her, needing to touch her. An ache filled him - a longing that couldn't be described in a single word and a thousand words still wouldn't be enough.

"I need you," he whispered, holding out his hand to her once again.

She reached out and as their fingertips touched an electric-like current shot through his body. Their fingers entwined and he pulled her to him, wrapping his arm around her waist and burying his face in her curly brown hair.

"I've waited so long for this," he whispered into her hair.

She turned her head and smiled as her fingertips touched his cheek before sliding her hand to the back of his head and pulling his lips down to hers. The kiss was one of fire and passion, lips mashing against lips as tongues danced and fought. Her body melted against his soft, warm skin...a promise of pleasures yet to come. His lips touched her neck as his hand moved up her hip, stroking softly upward until his thumb touched her...

"...sunshine with 70 percent chance of showers later in the day, so remember to grab that umbrella before heading out to work today. We'll be back after this message with the 6 o'clock news..."

He struck out at the alarm clock, knocking it off the nightstand and closed his eyes, hoping that if he fell back to sleep she would return.

After trying desperately for ten minutes, he gave up in defeat and slowly lifted his body up out of bed. He looked around and noticed the room was empty. The two blondes from the night before were nowhere in sight and he would later discover that all the cash he had in his wallet had disappeared with them.

Justin looked down and noticed he was still wearing his boxers. His pain medication having kicked in faster than he'd hoped. He rose up slowly from the bed and stretched out his back before making his way to the dresser to throw on a pair of basketball shorts. He yawned loudly, walking into the kitchen. He opened the fridge and saw that it was almost bare. He turned around and made his way to the cabinets in search of coffee. He couldn't survive a morning without it. He slammed the cabinet door shut when all he could find was decaf. "Fuck!" he cursed.

"Well good morning to you too, Sunshine!" a voice called from the hallway.

Justin looked over and could see his assistant, Richard, walking in the door. Richard set down a Starbuck's cup on the kitchen counter and continued to the living.

"You know me too well." Justin sighed as he lifted the cup to his lips and took a sip.

Richard never stopped to respond. He was too busy looking through his blackberry, spouting off Justin's schedule. "You've got a photo shoot lined up at two today with Nike for the new shoe line ad, and then you have that dinner meeting tonight with the folks from ESPN. And of course you have a doctor's appointment and physical therapy this morning at eleven, but that's nothing new."

Justin slowly dragged himself into the living room, finding a spot on the opposite couch, half listening to Richard. He continued to sip his coffee, looking out the window. "…You didn't even go through your mail, J?"

Justin looked down at the large pile of mail and shook his head, before turning his gaze back out the window. Richard grabbed up the pile and sorted through it briefly. "It's mostly medical bills. I'll take these over to the accountant on my way downtown so he can take care of them for you."

"Thanks." Justin mumbled.

Richard stopped his search of the mail and landed upon an envelope the size of a greeting card. He handed it to Justin. "Looks like it could be a get well soon card. It says it's from Boone High School?"

Justin's eyes widened and he immediately sat up and took the envelope from Richard's hand. He opened it up and pulled out the heavy stock paper with gold foil accented design and began to read it aloud:

_ Dear Alumni,_

_Can you believe it's been 10 years? Our Reunion is fast approaching and will be held the weekend of April 10 & 11, 2009. We're working really hard to make this a fun and relaxing reunion and we'd like to see as many classmates as possible! Where are you now? Looking at yearbooks and pictures evokes so many memories. Some good…Some bad, but all interesting. As a graduate of the class of 1999, you are someone special._

_We are planning the weekend as a "keep it casual" event. To kick it off we have arranged for an informal get together on Friday afternoon starting at 4:00 p.m. at Somer Recreational Park._

_Saturday night the festivities will be at the high school with Happy Hour at 6:30 p.m. Since most of us practically grew up together our theme is going to be Back In Time…a tribute to the 80's and 90's - so please feel free to dress accordingly. Please be comfortable! We will have wonderful food and beverages, lots of time for reminiscing, getting reacquainted, dancing and some entertainment._

_We look forward to seeing you!_

_The reunion committee_

Justin continued to stare down at the paper long after he'd already read it. "Are you going to go?" Richard asked. "It's next week and you're pretty much free since you are on the injured list now."

"Naw, man. I have no intention of going back after all these years." He chuckled lightly.

"It may be good for you. Surprise your folks with a visit?" Richard could see Justin wasn't really listening to him. He seemed caught up in his own thoughts as he gazed down at the invitation staring back at him.

"I just…I left to get away from that small town. I have no desire to go back," he said softly, trying mostly to convince himself.

"Not even to shove it in certain people's face that you are a millionaire now?"

Richard watched as Justin grabbed the remote off the coffee table and pointed it towards the television, signaling that the conversation was now over. He made his way into the kitchen to take inventory of what needed to be done. He started typing himself a list into his blackberry. He could see Justin rubbing his knee and grabbed up a bottle of water and two pills and walked them over to him. Justin took the bottle and set it down, never opening it.

"You need to take them before the pain gets worse, Justin."

"I'll wait till later. I think I'm suffering from some type of side effects."

"What you do mean?"

"Ever since I got hurt, I've been having these dreams. The same dream almost every night."

"Oh, of that girl again?" Richard asked, leaning against the counter, typing away at his blackberry.

"Yeah."

"Didn't you go to high school with her?"

"Yeah." Justin grew silent for a minute. "…Rich, there was just something about her. She was beautiful, but in a plain sort of way." A smile crept across his face as he continued to reminisce. "She never had to put any effort into it. She could have just rolled out of bed and came to school and she would have still looked amazing."

The more he thought about her the more he smiled. "…She didn't fit into a certain mold. You couldn't categorize her. I mean the bitch was bad as hell, Rich. Hella smart, cultured, sophisticated, yet nowhere near boushie...Always up for anything. She could hang with the best of them and I loved that about her."

Richard noticed Justin's eyes lit up more in those few minutes talking about this girl than they ever had in the 3 years that he'd been working for him. "What was her name?" he asked.

"Cherish…Cherish Cummings."

"Pretty name." Rich commented. Justin nodded in agreement. "J, you should go to this reunion. Maybe she'll be there."

"I highly doubt it." he laughed.

"People change. Especially after 10 years, Justin. You should go. Talk to her. Seeing her again may help with those dreams you've been having."

"Seeing her will only make matters worse than they already are..." He muttered, tossing the invitation onto the coffee table.

"Why's that?" Richard could see that sparkle in his eye that had surfaced a few moments earlier was now gone again.

Avoiding the question entirely, Justin rose from the couch and said, "I better get in the shower so we can head out."


	2. Chapter 2

Justin sat on the edge of the examination table, wincing in pain while grabbing handfuls of the loud and annoying exam table paper. He watched as the doctor pressed his fingers around his knee, secretly wanting to take the man's hand and breaking every last one of the fingers that were causing him such discomfort.

To take his mind off the pain, he started to explain the problem he was having with his pain medication and his reoccurring dreams. He figured he'd rather not take the pills and deal with the pain as opposed to slowly making himself crazy every night. But at this point, with the way the doctor was pressing down on his knee, he was re-thinking that decision entirely.

"…You say you were having these dreams before your injury right, Justin?" the doctor asked.

"Yeah, but I would only have them every once in a while. Ever since I hurt my knee, I've been having them non-stop."

"Well I'm afraid that isn't a side effect," the doctor stated plainly. He slid over towards the counter on his wheeled stool and began to write some notes down in the file before turning his gaze back to Justin. He opened his mouth to speak but paused, "…You may want to see a psychologist about that."

"No-I don't need a damn shrink, doc." Justin snapped before getting up from the examination table and putting his jeans back on.

With the rim of his bifocals slightly lowered, and one eyebrow raised, he gave Justin that all too familiar look. Justin was immediately put on the defensive and said, "I just don't believe in sitting in a room and telling some complete stranger about my childhood, so he can make assumptions about what is wrong me, Doc. I got my momma for that."

"It was only a suggestion." The doctor defended, raising up from his stool to hand Justin two pain pills and a small cup of water, demanding Justin take them. "…So on a scale of 1 to 10, how has your pain level been lately?"

"Before digging your fingers into my knee?" he joked, "I would say around a 6."

"Well that's better." The doctor continued to write more notes. "Slowly, but surely. It's going to take a while for your ACL to heal. We have to get some more scans taken, but I think the surgery took."

Justin didn't seem too optimistic about the news. The doctor placed down his pen and patiently waited for Justin to finish lacing up his shoe so that he could have his full attention. "You know, Justin. I deal with player injuries all the time. When you're out there playing, you think you're invincible, till the moment you're not anymore." He sighed crossing his arms and leaning back against the counter. "It definitely can affect a person…In more ways than one. You really should find someone to talk to abo-" He could see Justin on the verge of protest. "Look, it doesn't have to be a shrink. Maybe a friend, or other players who've had similar injuries. They may be able to pull you out of this rut."

Justin grabbed up his coat, nodding in agreement. As he was about to step out of the room he looked back at the doctor and said. "I've spent half of my life chasing this dream…Making huge sacrifices along the way. And to know that it could be over in a snap? Literally…A snap!" he reiterated by snapping his finger. "I'm not ready to let that go, yet. It has to have been worth everything I've gone through…It has to have been worth everything I've given up…"

Later on that evening after his arduous physical therapy session and his photo shoot with Nike, Justin headed out for drinks with some programming executives for ESPN. His agent was working hard to make sure that he kept busy while they were playing the waiting game on whether or not he'd be able to play ball again.

For the first hour of the meeting all Justin kept hearing was "what are you going to do if?" Isn't that why they were having the meeting in the first place? So there would be no question as to what he was going to do if?

He ordered drink after drink in hopes of drowning out their voices as they spoke of other players from the past who had been injured and were never heard from again. Who ended up broke because they didn't make wise financial investments when they had the chance. Their wives or girlfriends eventually leaving them because they could no longer afford the lifestyle in which they'd become accustomed. He didn't want to hear any of that shit. Especially now, when his career was teetering on the fence.

"I'm sorry to interrupt gentlemen." The maitre'de said as he leaned down over the table. "There is an emergency telephone call for you Mr. Timberlake."

Justin excused himself from the table and followed the man to a nearby office so he could take the call, "Hello?"

"Justin? It's Rich. I just got a call here at the apartment. You're father's had an accident."

"What happened? Where is he now?"

"They were vague with the details. But he fell and hit his head on something. They transferred him over to Saint Francis Hospital to have some tests done. They said they don't think it's that serious bu-"

Justin cut him off, "Call and get me the first flight you can. I'm on my way home now."

The two and a half hour flight from Boston to Memphis was a quick one. Justin had slept from the moment he sat in his seat till the moment they landed. He silently thanked the alcohol that was still working its way through his system from the night before. He rushed through the terminal, ear glued to his phone, trying to get in touch with his mother or stepfather to see if they could pick him up, but there was no answer at the house. He began to regret telling Rich that he didn't need a car service to pick him up and that he would be fine. A few fans came up asking for autographs and he gladly obliged before finally making his way downstairs to gather up his luggage and rent a car.

When Justin finally reached the hospital, he was directed to the 7th floor. He noticed the barrage of signs outside the wing warning about the use of cell phones in the hospital. As he walked through the double doors, he reached down in his pocket to grab his phone and turn it off. His senses perked up slightly when he smelled a familiar scent hit the air around him. It was a slight hint of peaches. He turned his head slightly in the direction of the scent and saw a woman with her back to him, walking in the opposite direction, digging down for something in her oversized purse. He watched her for a moment, but was interrupted by the nurse behind the desk. "Can I help you, Sir?"

"Yeah my father was brought in last night. Timberlake…Randall Timberlake."

"Oh well let me see if I can find him in the system. We haven't had time to update the new arrivals. Just give me one second."

The older woman reached down and grabbed her glasses that were hanging around her neck and brought them up to her face as she squinted at the screen in front of her, slowly typing the name into the system.

Justin turned his gaze back down the hallway towards the woman he'd passed earlier. She was now standing down at the open double doors of the ward talking to some of the staff. Her long, brown hair streamed down from the confines of an army green cadet hat. He couldn't make out her face, but knew she seemed familiar. He watched her closely as she talked to one of the other nurses. He immediately froze when he heard her laugh. It was a laugh he knew all too well.

"What was your father's name again, Sir?"

Justin turned his attention back to the older woman behind the desk, who was now on the phone trying to figure out where his dad was. He repeated his information once again. The younger nurse he had seen earlier talking to the mysterious woman in the hat came over, making her way behind the nurse's station. "Excuse me…" he asked, grabbing her attention. "That woman you were just talking to a minute ago…What was her name?"

"That was Cherish." she smiled.

Justin's head whipped back towards the double doors to see her, but she was gone. "Did she see me?" he muttered to himself.

"Huh?" the younger nurse asked, not really hearing what he said.

"Nothing…Never mind." He stated, shaking his head…Glancing down hall again for any sight of her.

"You need help, Margaret?" she asked the older nurse.

"They didn't input the patient information into the system for this young man's father. He was brought in late last night. I'm trying to find out what room he's in, but no one downstairs is answering."

The younger nurse looked up and smiled at him. "Justin, your dad is in room 7133. Sorry. We're understaffed this morning so things are a bit crazy."

It was obvious that she knew him, either from town or she was a sports fan. Justin looked at the woman for a minute, trying to place her face but couldn't. "Umm…Thanks."

He turned on his heels to walk away, but didn't know which direction he should go. She simply smiled and said, "Here, I'll walk you down there."

As they walked down the corridor together, she blurted out, "We used to go to high school together, you know."

He gazed at her face, but still could not place it. "Oh did we?"

"Yeah…I think we went out on a date once."

"I've seen a lot of faces since then…I hope you aren't offended if I don't remember." He smiled apologetically.

"Well I think after sophomore year you were only interested in one face anyway." She grinned.

He knew exactly who she was referring to, but chose not to indulge the conversation. When they got to room 7133, Justin reached his hand out to hers to shake it and said, "Thanks…Umm"

"Kathy…Kathy Miller?"

"Ooohhh! Kathy!" he smiled, finally recognizing her. She'd gained about twenty pounds since high school, but she still had that bright smile and bubbly personality he remembered. He waved goodbye and told her he would talk to her later. As he went to push the door open, he hesitated for a moment. He hadn't seen his father in 6 years.

He took a deep breath before finally entering the room. He called out to his father but there was no answer. As he made his way further into the room, he could see his dad sleeping. He quietly crept over to his bedside and looked down at the man who was half responsible for bringing him into the world.

He had a bandage on his head, with small tufts of hair sticking out from underneath. His father had aged so much in so little time. Or had he always looked like that and Justin just didn't remember?

"Oh, Mr. Timberlake." A voice called out from behind him. "Had I known you were coming, we would have had someone waiting to talk to you."

Justin turned around and could see a tall man with a white medical coat walking towards him. The two men shook hands. "Your father fell at the nursing facility and hit his head on a pointed corner of a table. They brought him over here as a precautionary measure. There is some slight swelling and he does have a pretty bad gash, so we're going to run some more tests later on today to check his injury. Will you be staying in town? In case we need to contact you?"

"Yes." Justin stated. "I'll leave my cell number and my assistant's number at the desk if you need to contact me. And you can always reach me through my mother. Her number should be on file already."

The doctor nodded his head. He looked over Justin's father, checking the bandage, "We gave him something to help him sleep. He was disoriented last night and with the sudden new environment, he had a hard time relaxing. He should be asleep for the next few hours and then we are going to run tests. So you may want to go and get settled in and then come back. I can leave word to allow you up on the floor after visiting hours."

"That won't be necessary." Justin interjected. "I think he's had enough strangers in his face. I'll let him get his rest and will be back here in the morning if that is okay?"

"That's fine." The doctor smiled walking him back down the hallway.

Justin started out of the hospital and hopped into his rental car and headed towards Boone County. When he reached the city limits and saw the welcome sign, a flood of memories washed over him. He smiled to himself as he drove down the familiar streets.

Justin passed his best friend Trace's old house and chuckled, remembering the time when they were 10 and Trace tried to sneak out through his bedroom window to go pool hopping, only to get stuck. He was found the next morning by his mother, sound asleep and still wedged half-in and half-out of the window.

He made a turn and headed down Main Street, noticing the county had added four new traffic lights, making a total of six. His hometown of Boone was growing! He chuckled at the thought.

As he turned down Grande Avenue he passed the bowling alley where he and his friends had played so many times before. It sat right next to Darla's pub. Justin slowed the car and made the familiar right turn down Eighth Street. He pulled the car over to the curb in front of the third house from the end and sat there. He hadn't been here in years. He'd have to thank Sal later for keeping the place in such good condition.

When Justin's father was diagnosed with Frontotemporal dementia, everyone in the family had pretty much given up. They all started fighting over money, property and everything else they could get their hands one. They acted as if his father had died.

Justin refused to give up hope that the doctors could be wrong and that his father would be okay. He hadn't been able to sell his father's home. He just couldn't bring himself around to doing it, no matter what ten different doctors and fifty different family members said. No matter if the man had abandoned him and his mother when he was baby…That was his father. And if one day he miraculously remembered who he was for more than five minutes, Justin wanted his father to have a home to come back to…his home.

Justin sat and stared at the porch and a faint smile crossed his lips when he listened to the sound of John Mellencamp's "Small Town" playing in the car. His mind wandered back to the days when he would sit on that same porch with Trace, playing with their G.I. Joe action figures, listening to the radio, sharing their dreams. The memories were so vivid. He remembered the time when he and Cherish argued on that same porch about how he drove off and left her at the bowling alley one night, because, in his opinion, she was acting like a spoiled brat. He closed his eyes and for just that moment, he could almost feel her, sense her fragrance, hear her voice…

He couldn't go inside that house just yet. He didn't want to be surrounded by all those memories right now. He put the car in drive and continued to drive. When he reached the end of the road he put on his turn signal to make a right towards the direction of his mother's house. But when he looked to the left, he spotted her…Same clothes from earlier. Same hat covering her long curly brown hair.

Justin made a quick left turn and inched his way up the street slowly, finding an empty spot in front of a house that was four houses away, across from her. He put his window down slightly to get a better look. She was out on the front lawn, chasing around a boy who looked around 9 or 10 years old. The boy looked like her. She chased him into the driveway where he dribbled a basketball and tossed it towards the hoop hanging overtop the garage. It easily went in, never hitting the rim. "The kid's got skills," he said.

Justin couldn't help wondering to himself. A smile crept across his face when he heard her boisterous laughter and watched her toss the ball, completely missing the hoop and hitting the roof of the garage. He chuckled as he watched the child taunt her before he was taken by surprise and placed in a headlock. Justin watched her intently as she and the child walked towards the porch steps of the house. But for some reason she lifted her head and looked in his direction. Justin sank down lower in his seat trying to stay out of sight. She lightly smacked the child on the butt and motioned for him to head inside. She inched her way up the stairs, still looking in Justin's direction. Had she seen him? She couldn't have, he was too far away and had on a pair of sunglasses. Not wanting to take any chances, he quickly looked back to see if any cars were coming and made a quick u-turn, heading back up into the direction of his mother's house in Millington.

**CHAPTER MUSIC:**

Small Town ~ John Mellencamp


	3. Chapter 3

"Why didn't anyone tell me that Cherish still lived in town?" Justin asked as he walked into the kitchen, giving his mom a kiss on her cheek.

"Does she?" she kissed him back, hugging him tightly. "Well, ever since you went away to college, I haven't really been back there. It's only fifteen minutes away, but it's a world away now that your da-"

"I get it, mom." He cut her off.

His mother could see the aggravation and worry on his face. "How is he?" she asked turning around for a moment to place a piece of cheese on one of the burgers on the stove.

He folded his hands across the table and took a deep breath. "They're gonna run some tests over the next few days and determine the injury. They said there is some swelling and a pretty bad gash. I'll find out more tomorrow."

His mother nodded her head and went back to cooking his hamburger.

"…I saw her today." He said lowly.

"Saw who, honey?"

"Cherish."

"How's she doing?"

"I don't know. I didn't talk to her."

"Why not? The two of you used to be so close back when you were dating in high school."

Justin watched his mother as she bent down in the fridge to take out the lettuce and tomatoes for the buns. "…To this day, I will never understand why the two of you broke up, Justin. I know you were young and everything, but the two of you seemed so in love."

He hated himself for having to lie to her after all these years. "I just don't want to talk about the past, Ma."

"Yeah. Yeah. You never wanna talk about her, yet that's the first thing you asked me when you walked in that door." She chuckled as she set his plate down in front of him, sliding into the seat next to him. She watched as he ran his hand across his forehead, finally stopping to rub his eyes. "Just let me know when you want to lie down. I need to put some fresh sheets down for you. Did you take your meds yet?"

"Yeah I took em' already." He whined. He took a bite out of his burger and slowly chewed it, looking out the window into the backyard at the dogs chasing each other. "…I think I'm gonna stay at dad's house, Ma. I just want to take some time alone. Clear my head."

"Are you sure?" his mother asked, hurt that he'd rather be alone than spend time with her.

He leaned over and kissed his mom on her cheek, hugging her lightly before saying, "Just a day or two, Ma. Then I'll be back."

"Okay." She smiled, hugging him tighter.

When he was done eating, Justin went into the living room and asked his step-father to drive with him back into the city to return the rental car. He wouldn't need it now that he was in town and had access to his Escalade. When they returned back to the house, his stepfather asked him to help take the trash bins down to the end of the driveway. He stepped into the four car garage and hit the button on the wall to raise one of the doors, when something caught his eye. It was a car on the far end of the garage covered by a tarp. He walked over to the front of the car and lifted up the tarp slightly before raising his hand to his mouth in shock, "Oh shit! Is that my black Ford?"

His stepfather looked over and nodded. "Yeah, you're momma insisted that we not sell it like you wanted."

Justin pulled the tarp off the car and threw it to the side. It was his old 1990 Ford F250 truck with a black matte finish paint job. Walking around it grinning from ear to ear, he said "It looks better than it did ten years ago!"

"Yeah I put some new tires on her, made sure she was up and runnin'." His stepfather walked over to the door leading back into the house and grabbed a pair of keys hanging on the wall and tossed them to Justin. "She still runs good."

Justin opened the door and turned the key in the ignition. "Whooo!" he exclaimed listening to the loud hum of the engine. "And she purrs like a kitten!" Justin turned on the radio and blasted whatever song was playing. "I used to think I was da shit in this car!" he yelled over the music.

His stepfather just smiled and continued out of the garage and down the driveway. Justin quickly jumped out and helped with the rest of the trash before saying goodbye to his mother and heading back to Boone.

When he got back into town, Justin drove down Grande Avenue and decided to stop at Darla's pub for a quick drink before heading to his father's house. He parked the truck out front and made his way inside. The pub looked different than it had when he was growing up. He'd been coming into the pub since he was a little boy. Watching his dad have a drink with his friends while Justin sat on a bar stool next to him sucking down a special vanilla milkshake made by Ms. Darla, the owner. His dad would even slip him a beer every now and again after he turned sixteen.

Justin looked over to the left at the U-shaped bar and spotted a few familiar faces sitting around having drinks and looking up at the large flat screen televisions on the wall as they watched game highlights from the night before. He looked to the right and could see a tiny stage where the pool tables used to be. He saw the usual booths lining the pub and towards the back he spotted a cornered off area with about 3 pool tables and more television screens. The place looked mostly the same with plenty of polished wood like before, yet it was slightly updated to attract a younger crowd. He liked it. Darla must have finally come to her senses after he and a bunch of other guys begged her to get more than one tiny 20 inch TV in the place so they could watch sports. Back when they were younger, they would have to squint their eyes to make out the ant sized players on the screen. He swore that was part of the reason he needed to wear glasses sometimes.

He could hear a voice yelling from the back and looked up to see a brown haired female walking backwards towards him. "I'm not playing this time, Anne Marie. You better be here on time tomorrow or I'm gonna kick your ass!"

"We'll bring da bikini's and jello for you to fight in!" An older man at the bar deadpanned, causing the others at the bar to laugh.

"See! And these dirty old men are my witnesses!" she yelled back.

Not watching where she was going, Cherish turned around towards the door and walked right into Justin's chest. "Oh I'm so sorry. I wasn't-" her voice trailed off when their eyes met.

It was her. Those beautiful green eyes looking up at him and all he could do was smile. "Hey." he stared down at her.

Caught completely off guard by his presence, she couldn't speak. "Uh…." It was like all thoughts and words had completely left her head when she saw him.

"It's me…Justin…Justin? From high-"

"Ahh…whaa..."Still, all words were lost. "Wha...wha…" She shut her eyes tightly and shook her head, trying to wake up from what she knew had to be a dream.

But this was no dream. It was him. He was really standing right in front of her. Why couldn't she speak? She had rehearsed what she was going to say to him in front of her mirror about a million times over the years. She knew the speech by heart. She even practiced air smacks trying to put as much force behind her hand as she could so that it would leave a lasting impression on his face when and if she ever saw him again! And here he was standing right in front of her. Tall, broad shoulders, perfectly chiseled jaw line, blue eyes the color of the ocean. And she couldn't move. She saw him lean down slightly as if he were about to try and hug her. Should she hug him? No! Hell no! What was she thinking? She had to get out of there.

"…Are you listening to me, Cherish!?" Anne Marie yelled to her from the bar. "You need to be back here with the cases of beer before eight."

Cherish simply nodded and took off past Justin out the front door, running across the street and jumping into her red Durango. She could hear feet shuffling behind her and heard him calling after her, but she couldn't stop. She had to retreat, retreat, re-fucking-treat! He had gotten her with the sneak attack and she had to go and regroup her forces so she could come back strong.

Cherish started the car up quickly and sped off down the road and was sure that she left tire marks in the pavement from hauling ass out of there so fast. She drove as far as she could and as fast as she could across town. When she reached the parking lot of her supplier she put the car in park and let her head fall against the steering wheel. She kept asking herself question after question. "What the hell is he doing here? And why are you still a blithering idiot for this man after ten years, Cherish? This guy completely broke your heart! You're an idiot! Get it together…Get it the fuck together!"

Visions of his face kept flashing through her mind. Was he always that damn gorgeous? God, ten years completely did his body good. She needed to stop. She had to stop thinking about him. He was here and there was nothing she could do about it. She immediately thought of his father and figured that had to be his only reason for being in town. She would just have to deal with it until he left.

Cherish reached down into her bag and pulled out her cell phone frantically searching for a number in her contacts. She pressed send and waited. After four rings the voicemail kicked in. "Guess who just popped up into town after disappearing ten fucking years ago!? Call me back when you get this. I need to talk to you."

Cherish threw her phone back into her purse and sat there for a moment trying to gather her thoughts, before getting out and going inside to pick up the eight cases of beer and alcohol that Anne Marie forgotten to order.

When she made her way back into town, a little after 7:30, she rode down Grande Avenue and almost ran off the road when she spotted his black truck sitting out in front of the bar. That same bitch of a black truck she shared so much history with. She must not have noticed it when she bolted out of there earlier. She quickly turned the corner and pulled her truck around the back of the pub and went inside to get Jimmy, one of the other employees, to come and unload everything.

She slowly made her way inside and peeked through the small round window in the kitchen. There he was, sitting at the bar having a beer, pretending to be interested in whatever Mr. Shaw was talking to him about. "…Would you believe your daddy actually made the shot?"

"Yeah he told me." Justin nodded, slightly smiling.

"Hey, Timberlake!" an older man on the far side of the bar called out to him.

"Yes, Mr. Jamison?"

"You owe me $50 for that game you guys ended up losing on account of you showing off and getting hurt, boy!"

"Is that right?" Justin asked, looking up towards the TV, trying to ignore the old man.

"Yeah. I had money riding on you…Had to go and get yourself hurt. I seen you up there talking all that smack to the other team. Serves you ri-"

"Didn't anyone ever teach you any manners, Mr. J?" Cherish interrupted.

Justin looked up and could see her making her way behind the bar with a case of Budweiser in her arms. "You never kick a man when he's down. And stop trying to hustle Number 23 over there. We all know you've never had $50 to bet on anything."

The bar immediately erupted in laughter. Justin lifted his beer up to her in thanks and headed over to a booth to be alone. Even though she'd run away from him earlier and appeared as if she didn't want to have anything to do with him, she still somehow came to his rescue...Just like she always done when they were younger. He was pitiful and she knew it. This was her way of showing him pity in his most pathetic hour.

He thought to himself, "Yep...You're pathetic, JT. And everyone knows it...even her."

He took another long sip of his beer and glanced over at TV screens. He heard the sound of a glass touching the table and looked back and saw her slide a small cocktail glass in front of him, pouring Jack Daniels into it. "How's your dad?"

He looked up at her. She seemed genuinely concerned and even though he could hear the strain in her voice as she asked, he was glad that she actually spoke to him. "They've gotta run some tests to check on the injury…Make sure it hasn't affected the damage that's already been done."

He tried to slow the beating of his heart, but it seemed to always beat a little faster when he was around her. The irony of having Gavin DeGraw's "Not Over You" playing softly in the bar wasn't lost on him either. He watched as Cherish reluctantly slid into the booth across from him, folding her arms across one another and gripping herself tightly as she mustered the strength to speak. "That will probably take a few days."

"Yeah. That's what the doctor was tellin' me." Justin took a sip of his drink, more to give himself some courage, rather than anything else. After a moment he finally looked up at her and asked, "How've you been?"

_If you ask me how I'm doing  
I would say I'm doing just fine  
I would lie and say that you're not on my mind_

As much as she wanted to tear into him and unleash the 10 year tornado of emotions that had been brewing insider her, she just couldn't bring herself to do it. "I'm doing great." She smiled. "How's the knee?"

"It's healing. Doctor says slowly but surely. Just waiting to see if I'll be able to play again." He took another sip. His eyes drifted down to her shirt and noticed the writing that said 'Who needs a brain when you have these?'

Justin chuckled to himself and Cherish followed his gaze down to the words and smiled. "You like?"

He nodded, still gazing at her shirt. "Indeed."

"You mean the shirt or something else?" she joked, trying to break up the awkwardness.

"You shouldn't even have to ask me that after all these years, Cherish."

And just like that, there he was. That same flirtatious charmer from years ago, who, within minutes could warm a million cold hearts with his smile. She was supposed to be angry and seething with hatred for him but the only thing she was right now, was turned on. "How many drinks have you had since I've been gone?"

"More than a little, and less than enough." He joked. "Hey where's Ms. Darla? She'd never ask me such a foolish question. I could have alcohol poisoning and she'd just ask if I wanted another. I need to forge a complaint with managment."

"Well if you go down to the church on Main Street, you can find her there 24/7. She died about 4 years ago."

Justin's brows furrowed. "She did?" No one ever told him that she'd passed away. But then again, he never took the time out to keep in contact with most people from town anyway.

"Yeah. She had cancer." Cherish sadly muttered.

"So who owns it now? I know she didn't have any kids or anything."

"You're looking at the owner."

Justin almost fell out of his seat laughing. "You? Get the fuck outta here. I'd never imagine you owning a bar, Cherish. You were such the brain in high school."

"Well, 23…Not all of us can step over the people we care about to get ahead in life. Some of us actually had responsibilities and had to suck it up and deal." She responded harshly.

His laughter quickly faded to silence and he knew he had overstepped his boundary. He went to reach his hand out to touch hers, but she quickly pulled her hands back and tried to act like she was fixing her hair behind her ears. "I didn't mean to offend you, C."

She shook her head and dryly said, "You didn't…I mean some of us common folk round 'dese here parts actually have consciences and just can't up and leave the people we care about behind…"

He was again stunned into silence. He deserved that, but wanted to explain. Just as he was about to speak he heard a group of men walk in the door yelling and laughing. "Where's my girl at?" one of them called out.

Justin looked back towards the door and recognized a few faces. He turned back around to speak, but was cut off by Cherish standing up. "I'm comin', Bobby."

She rounded the booth past Justin and stopped. She looked back over at him…He was now sitting there with his head held down once again. She reached out and awkwardly patted his shoulder, "I really do hope everything ends up okay with your dad."

He reached up and patted his hand over top of hers and said thank you. It took everything in her to remove her hand and finally walk away. Justin watched her as she made her way over to Bobby, who proceeded to pick her up off the ground and hugged her tightly to his body.

"Why do you smell like you've already been drinking, Bobby?" she asked, grabbing his face to force him to look her in the eyes.

"Me and the guys got out from work a little early and hit the bar on our way outta the city. We only had a couple drinks...Come here." He moved her hair away from her face and leaned his head up towards her and kissed her gently on the lips.

Justin quickly averted his eyes. That was just too much for him to have to digest in one day…His arch rival and his ex-girlfriend...together. He focused his attention back to the TV until he heard his name being yelled from across the bar. "Timberlake's here? Where's he at? Timm-baa-laake! What upm kid!?"

"Grr-eeee-nnne!" Justin mocked.

"No you don't." Cherish said as she grabbed Bobby's arm and dragged him towards the door. "We're leaving."

Anne Marie walked over and refilled Justin's glass with more Jack Daniel's. Cherish looked over at her mouthing and signaling for Anne Marie not to let Justin drink too much before calling over to him as she was leaving, "It was good seeing you, Number 23!"

He simply raised his glass over his head, never looking her way. He grabbed his drink and made his way back over to the bar, taking out two crisp hundred dollar bills and placing them on the counter. "Drinks are on me tonight, Gentlemen!" The entire bar erupted in cheers and two men standing on both sides of him started patting him on his back. "Anne Marie, let me get another…And make it a double!"

**CHAPTER MUSIC:**

_Not Over You ~ Gavin DeGraw_


	4. Chapter 4

_**- September 1995** _

"It's the beginning of an era, JT!" Trace exclaimed as they walked down the hallway. "This high school won't know what hit em' when we're done."

"Trace, please. We're just freshman, dude."

Justin looked down at his paper and up at the numbers written on the lockers in the hallway, before he stopped and turned to the one matching his sheet. Trace leaned back against the wall and continued to rattle on. "Yeah, but you already got a varsity spot on the basketball team in the bag. We've excelled beyond just freshman status, my dude!"

"What's with all this **_we_** stuff?" Justin laughed looking over at his friend and then back down at the combination to his new locker.

"You know the best friend gets all the perks."

As Justin was putting his jacket into his locker, he heard laughter coming from down the hallway. He turned his gaze and spotted a girl walking towards him with a small group of girls he knew from childhood. Her curly brown hair reached half-way down her back almost to her ass. And what an ass it was, he thought to himself as he glanced down at it when she turned. She had on a pair of shorts that seemed to hug her right where it counted the most.

When she laughed, it seemed as though she were laughing with her entire soul as it came deep from within in chest. He watched her struggle with the combination to the locker in front of her at the end of the hall. After three tries she finally got it to open and smiled to herself with satisfaction. It must have been contagious, because and all Justin could do was smile as he watched her.

She had to be new in town. He'd never seen her before. She stood out from the rest. It wasn't because he had grown up with most of the girls in town and knew them all pretty well, but rather the fact that this girl had an air about her that made you stop and notice. She wasn't just a face in the hall. She was different. And when you grow up in a small town, you tend to obsess about all things different.

"Trace." He nudged his friend with his elbow. "Who's that girl down there with Kate, Caroline, and Jennifer?"

Trace looked up from his class schedule and down the hallway. "Oh, that's the chick from New York. Her daddy's some big time surgeon who grew up here. They moved back over the summer while you were away at basketball camp."

Traced watched his friend continue to stare down the hallway. He put his hand around Justin's shoulder, pulling him into the opposite direction. "She's outta your league, dude. I heard she is a straight up, advanced physics, calculus lovin', book readin' geek."

"She doesn't look like a geek." he said as he turned his head back to catch another glimpse.

Trace laughed. "I think geeks from the city looked different than the geeks from the country."

The bell rang over the loud speaker and both friends separated to go to homeroom. Afterwards, Justin set out to his English class. He found a seat near the back and slouched down in his desk. He was already bored to tears and the class hadn't even started. The guy sitting next to him had on a pair of headphones but he could hear the Human League's "Don't You Want Me" blaring. Justin rested his head down on top of his books waiting for the class to begin when he heard Caroline's big mouth yell to the front of the classroom. "Over here, Cee Cee!"

He looked up and saw the girl from the hallway standing at the front of the room. She seemed nervous as she made her way past a couple people who were unmistakably staring at her and whispering to each other. Justin's eyes lit up when he noticed the empty chair between him and Caroline. He quickly sat up and pretended to open his book as if he were interested in the subject matter. He frowned slightly when she sat down and immediately started to talk to Caroline. She didn't seem to notice him at all when she sat down. She never even glanced his way. That's not something girls did to him.

_Don't you want me, baby  
Don't you want me, oh  
Don't you want me, baby  
Don't you want me, oh_

Justin sat and watched her through the corner of his eye. Listening to her talk. She was definitely a city girl. There were no ya'lls or ain't's uttered once from her lips. He noticed that the more her body shifted in her seat the more her purple pen with the bouncing fury end kept sliding towards the end of the desk. It began to teeter at the edge when she finally noticed it. She went to grab it, but it was too late. It had already started its decent to the floor when Justin reached out his arm and grabbed it.

"Nice catch." She smiled.

He grinned as he handed her the pen.

"Thanks. I'm Cherish. Cherish Cummings."

"Justin Timberlake."

He noticed her face light up in recognition. "Ah. The big basketball star I keep hearing about."

With an eyebrow raised he asked, "What else have you heard about me?"

"Things a lady should never repeat." she blushed.

"Awww. You should tell me. I need to try to convince you that I'm a nice guy."

"Well my pen is a good start." She smiled, placing it down in front of her before resting her elbows onto the desk and her chin in her palm. "I guess I'll just have to wait and see how true all those stories really are."

"...Alright class! Settle down-"

_Don't you want me, baby  
Don't you want me, oh  
Don't you want me, baby  
Don't you want me, oh_

"Justin?" a voice seemed to call him from far away behind the music that was playing.

He slightly opened his eyes, but his vision was too blurred to make out the face.

"Justin, wake up please! Cherish is gonna kill me!"

"Hey! Anne Marie! Where's my beer I asked furr?" he slurred.

"You drank it…Along with everything else you could get your hands on." Anne Marie grabbed his arm and tried to stand him up. "Come on. It's almost closing time. We need to get you up and moving around so you can get home."

"I got my car rrriiigght outside." Justin grabbed his keys out of his pocket and pointed towards the door, accidentally dropping them to the floor.

The petite, short haired brunette grabbed the keys. "Oh no, no, no. I'm not tryna get fired tonight for lettin you drive drunk."

A few blocks away at Bobby's house, Cherish was lying naked on his bed trying to defend herself from his verbal attack. She and Bobby had been arguing about Justin's arrival back to town from the minute they left the pub. Bobby was also visibly drunk and slurring every other word. "…Is that the reason you don't want to have sex with me? Cause Mr. Big Time's home? That's it! Ain't it? He's home and he's got your panties all in a wad for him."

Cherish rolled her eyes and banged her fist into the mattress and yelled, "Stop being a dumbass." She pushed herself up on her elbows to look at him. "Bobby, I'm laying here…Naked, wet and ready and you can't get it up!"

Usually when Bobby got high and drunk with his friends, she wouldn't even bother going home with him. She knew it would only be a matter of time before he passed out. But tonight, tonight she needed Bobby. She needed him to be the caring and overly affectionate boyfriend type so she could escape out of the bar. So she could get as far away from Justin as she could. She wanted Bobby to literally fuck her senseless tonight. She didn't want to think. She just needed a release.

Bobby walked over to the bed and crawled up between her legs leaving a trail of kisses up her abdomen, "I can get it up, baby. Just give me a minute." He let his tongue glide across her neck. "Maybe if you play with it some more."

Cherish pushed him off her body, "I've been playing with it for the past half hour. You know how you get when you smoke and drink."

"I'm sorry, baby. Lay back." he insisted, pushing her chest down lightly. "Let me please you with my tongue."

"Come on. Let me please you," he repeated, slowly moving his mouth down and applying kisses to the sides of her breast. Slowly he caressed her hard nipples with his mouth, tugging with his teeth.

"Let me please you…" he whispered again, continuing to kiss down her stomach, rolling slow circles with his tongue around her belly button.

That was it. That was better. Her mind started to drift off, feeling the slight pull in her stomach as his tongue danced across her skin. She was aching with anticipation as he moved his mouth lower, and down to the soft fleshy area lining the inside of her thighs.

He opened his mouth deep and sucked in large circles. Cherish's legs spread wider, luxuriating in the sensation of his mouth against her, the gentle scraping of the stubble on his face against the tender flesh of her thighs. Her hands moved down and roamed through his dark brown hair, guiding him, as the volume and frequency of her moans increased.

Her eyes fluttered shut and thoughts of **_him_** started flowing through her mind like a raging river. His smile as he looked down at her at the bar, the hardness of his body when she bumped into him, the way he seemed so vulnerable, the slightest hint of lust in his eyes as he stared down at the words on her shirt…God, she'd missed him. No, no, no! She didn't want these thoughts. Not right now! Not when she had Bobby's tongue so close to where she desperately needed it. She went home with him to push those thoughts away, not get lost in them!

Bobby teasingly moved up her thigh and back across her belly button in a high wide arc, until he was repeating his passionate tasting of her other leg.

"Please…" she moaned. "I can't take anymore."

She couldn't take anymore. Cherish couldn't handle the thoughts that were rushing through her mind. She wanted Bobby to make them go away and make the pain that was re-surfacing, disappear…Even if it was only for a little while.

Bobby worked his way across her stomach, stopping at the midpoint of her belly button. Her stomach trembled as he began a gradual descent, his mouth grazing back and forth the across her ripe and wanting pussy. Cherish arched her hips, pressing herself towards Bobby's mouth.

"Please…yes," she gasped in broken words.

She could feel Bobby's tongue begin move lazily across her clit. She grabbed his head and tried to steer him into the direction in which she wanted him to go, but it was no use. She was loosing him. He was on his way to passing out and she'd had all she could take for one night.

Cherish lay on her back, her hand now resting against her forehead as if she had a fever, trying desperately to calm herself down. "Shit, Bobby! Forget it. You're just being sloppy with it." She brought her leg up slightly and pushed his shoulder with the sole of her foot so he would move. "I'm done."

Cherish got up and quickly started to get dressed, not even taking the time zip and button her jeans because she was so frustrated. She was pissed at him for going and ruining her one chance to get off and clear her mind.

"Where are you going?" Bobby asked crawling over towards his jeans. "I'll drive you back"

"Don't bother." she slammed the door behind her and stomped off down the road.

Cherish felt somewhat guilty, because Bobby was half right earlier when they argued. She did feel uncomfortable being with him knowing Justin was in town. She walked through the neighborhood making her way back to the bar. It was exactly what she didn't need, because all she could think about was **_him_**, and how they used to walk hand in hand down this same street, how they got caught in the rain one afternoon and kissed underneath Mr. Sawyers oak tree, or how he carried her all the way home on his back one afternoon after she twisted her ankle.

When she rounded the corner towards the bar she noticed Anne Marie trying her hardest to get Justin up off the curb. She looked up towards the heavens and chuckled, "Really? Are you getting me back for all those times I didn't go to church? You have a sick sense of humor tonight."

She slowly made her way over to the front of the bar and could see that Justin was tanked. "What the fuck, Anne Marie?" she scolded.

"Uh oh…You in trouuubblle…" Justin teased.

Anne Marie looked over and could see the fire blazing behind Cherish's eyes as she made her way closer to them. She immediately leaned down, grasping his hands one more time and sent up a silent prayer before successfully pulling Justin to his feet. "Cherish, I tried to stop him but he started buyin' everybody drinks and the next thing I knew he was passed out at the table."

"How was you gonna stop me from drankin'? I'm a grown ass man!" Justin laughed and threw his arm around Anne Marie's shoulder. "We just met, so you may not know that I'm a bit of a jackass."

"You don't seem like one." Anne Marie patted his back gently on the back. "Especially after the hundred dollar tip you gave me."

He looked over at towards Cherish. "You see that girl over there?" Justin asked leaning into her and pointing at Cherish grinning. "That there is my ex-girlfriend. The love of my life, who I fuckin' left pre-"

"Stop, JT…" Cherish warned, not wanting him to say another word.

She shifted uncomfortably as they both looked at her. She didn't want to think about it and she sure as hell didn't want to hear about it. She walked over and wrapped her arm around his back and Justin in turn wrapped his around her shoulder and leaned in to sniff her hair.

"Go ahead home, Anne Marie. I'll take care of it." Cherish could see Anne Marie was visible scared and upset. "It's okay...Really. Go get some sleep. I'm gonna need you here earlier tomorrow though."

Anne Marie nodded and headed off towards her car, offering one last time to help, but Cherish insisted again that she head home.

"Come on, 23. Let's get you home."

They slowly made their way to her car. "Drop me at my dad's. That's where I'm staying." He slurred, pointing in the complete opposite direction.

She helped him into the backseat and started off down the road towards Eighth. When they reached his dad's house, she struggled to get him out of the car and up the walkway to the front porch. He was busy slurring the lyrics to Michael Jackson's "She's outta my life."

"I don't know whether to live or die...And it cuts like a knife..."

She opened the screen and leaned him up against the large oak door and started reaching into his jean to find the keys the house.

"Damn, Cherish. You want it that bad…All you gotta do is ask." he smirked fiddling with the buckle on his jeans.

Cherish smacked his hands away, still searching his pockets. "I'm looking for your keys, you moron. Where are they?" she asked as she felt around in his jacket pockets.

"You're friend took em'…Bitch didn't give me my beer eitha!"

Cherish let her head fall back in frustration and was just about to scream when she remembered where there was a spare key. Back in high school, Justin didn't stay with his dad full-time and when he'd visit on weekends he'd always forget his key, prompting his dad to hide a spare. She steadied Justin up against the door and quickly ran down the steps and over to the bird feeder in front of the porch and reached under the bowl and grabbed the spare key.

"Awww…Baby, you remembered?"

"If I didn't believe in karma, I'd surely leave your stupid ass right here."

She opened the door and slowly walked him into the house. She'd noticed earlier that Justin had a slight limp on the way to the car and it seemed to only have gotten worse since they got to the house. She asked about his knee and he eventually stopped trying to be macho and broke down and told her that it felt like someone was pressing a million needles into it. She knew if he had to sleep on the couch, it may only aggravate his injury. "Can you make it up the steps?" she asked.

He nodded. They made their way to the staircase and Justin wobbled, falling forward into her, hands going to the wall on either side of her head. His body was slightly pressed against hers and the smell of whiskey and cologne invaded her senses. "She's out of my life...Damned indecision and cursed pride…" he sang softly.

Cherish pushed on his chest trying to distance herself from him. She struggled to get him up the stairs and over to his room. When she opened the door, and turned on the light, she immediately stopped. It looked exactly the same way it did ten years ago. Same posters on the wall of Michael Jordan, basketball trophies placed on the shelves in his bookcase, pictures scattered across his mirror.

She walked Justin over and sat him down on the bed and helped him out of his jacket. His body collapsed to the side, his head falling into the pillow. She stood up and grabbed his shoe and started her struggle to get them off when her cell phone rang.

"Tell them I'm not up for any interviews" Justin said into the pillow. "No comment you rat bastards!"

Cherish rolled her eyes as she answered. "Hello?"

"Cherish? I forgot to give you Justin's keys. I'll bring them to you. What's the-."

"Forget it now. I needed them like ten minutes ago. Just bring them to the bar with you tomorrow."

"Cherish, Can you check his jacket pockets for a pack of tic tacs?"

"Are you serious, Ann Marie!? Why the fuck do you wanna know about tic tacs right now? There's only a bottle of medication in his pocket."

There was a long pause on the other end and Cherish was too tired and too frustrated to have to deal with Anne Marie and her bullshit. Anne Marie explained that while she was behind the bar serving drinks, she noticed him pop two white things into his mouth and assumed that they were tic tacs. But shortly afterwards he passed out at the table and she was hoping that they weren't something else. Cherish hung up with Anne Marie and gabbed his jacket searching for the pill bottle. She read the bottle and warning tab that said "Do not consume alcoholic beverages when taking this medication."

She walked over to him. "Hey!" she yelled.

He didn't budge. She reached down and shook his shoulder trying to wake him up. Still nothing. She grabbed his chin in her hands and moved his face around trying to get him to wake up. Nothing. Cherish pushed him onto his back and put her head up to his chest. His heartbeat was slow and she was starting to worry until she heard him inhale deeply. "Mmmm…Peaches…You always smelled like peaches." He started to run his hand across her hair.

Her eyes fluttered shut slightly and she got lost in his touch before finally coming to her senses and moving. "Listen to me! Did you take these at the bar?"

He looked up towards the bottle and nodded. "Yeah my knee was starting to hurt."

"Dammit, JT! These fuckin things say do not take with alcohol...Get up!"

But Justin wouldn't budge. Cherish was beyond herself. She didn't have room for all the emotions she was feeling. She couldn't fit anger, hurt, resentment, lust, fear and anxiety into her system all at once. "You can't do this to me…I can't deal with this shit right now! This is too fucking much!" saying it more to herself than him.

"Just go head home." he waved up from the pillow. "I'll be fine. I'm safe in my bed. I'm good."

"Are you sure?" she asked nervously.

He waved towards her again, never responding. Cherish walked out of the room and into the bathroom down the hall to grab a trash can. She set it down next to the bed and showed Justin where it was in case he needed it. She stood there for a moment, watching him sleep. She spotted a small photo in a tiny frame sitting next to his bed on the nightstand and covered her mouth trying to hide her smile. It was a photo of her and Justin during their junior class trip to Libertyland Amusement Park. The Park had been gone for years...Just like him. She turned and was about to leave when Justin called after her. "Cherish?"

"Yeah?" she turned around and walked closer to him.

Justin leaned up and looked like he was about to say something. Cherish bent down slightly so she could hear him clearly, but instead of speaking, he leaned over and started vomiting. Cherish looked down and could see the mess he had made all over the bottom of her jeans and her shoes. She wanted to cry.

"Fuck, JT! These were my favorite Puma's!"

'How could this night get any worse?,' she thought to herself as she walked awkwardly down the hallway towards the bathroom to get something to clean up with. Once she was done cleaning up the floor and her jeans as best she could, she threw her shoes and socks in the trash. She adjusted the cold rag that she had placed on his head and looked around once more before she headed downstairs to leave. But something wouldn't let her walk out of that front door. Something kept holding her there. It must have been her conscience she thought to herself. She couldn't very well leave him like that. She could call his mother, she told herself. No, she didn't have the number and it wasn't listed. She could make the 15 minute drive and go get her. No, he might choke on his vomit and die while she was gone. At that moment, she hated being the daughter of a doctor. Had he not told her so many horror stories when she was growing up to scare her away from drinking, she wouldn't even think twice about leaving Justin to stew in his own stomach contents. She stomped back up the stairs and back into his room, finding a seat in a swivel desk chair.

When Justin awwoke the next morning he peered around the room and noticed he was home. All he had on was his boxer briefs and white t-shirt. He had a pack of ice wrapped around his knee, which was now mostly melted and dripping on the bed. The blanket and the sheets were missing and he looked over and saw them in a pile on the floor along with his clothes. He brought his hand to his forehead in pain and was about to lay back down when he heard the faintest of noises. He followed the noise and saw Cherish sitting in the chair across from him. Her head back against the chair, her mouth slightly open, with the tiniest snore inching its way out of her nose every few seconds. She had a towel draped over her thigh and a rag hanging from her hand.

In a scratchy voice he called out to her and she immediately sat up "Huh…Wait…Let me get the trash can!" she said loudly, looking around trying to get her bearings.

She winced at the pain surging through her back from sitting in the chair all night. She looked over and saw Justin squinting his eyes, trying to shield his face from the sun. "What happened?" he asked.

"You got completely shit faced and decided to take me for the ride."

"Huh?"

Cherish stood up and pointed down at herself. Her shirt and jeans were now covered in remnants of vomit.

"Oh god I am so sorry." He apologized, trying not to laugh at how her face was screwed up in disgust.

"It's not funny, 23. I had to sit here like this all night cause you wouldn't stop puking all over the place."

Justin apologized again and stood up to thank her but she moved away from him quickly, sitting back down in the chair. "Do you have any clothes I can borrow? I can't go another minute like this."

Justin pointed out that his bags were in his truck and Cherish pointed out that his truck was still back at the bar. Justin walked over to his dresser, not thinking there was anything in them, but came across a couple pairs of old sweatpants and t-shirts and handed them to her.

"Thanks."

She walked away into the bathroom and locked the door behind her and started up the water in the shower. She slowly and carefully took off the stained clothing and immediately tossed them in the trash before getting into the shower and letting the water fall down across her face. Tears began to well up in her eyes and she did everything she could not to let them fall. But she couldn't hold back any longer. The events from the night before as well as everything that happened 10 years ago came rushing down upon her like a freight train. Damn him for making her worry. Damn him for coming back into town and stirring up feelings that she had long ago locked away. Damn him for hurting her ten years ago. Damn him, damn him, damn him! She let her body slide down the wall and quietly sobbed as the water rushed down over her head.

Justin went out into the hallway to grab a towel so he could shower in his dad's room. He heard a noise on the other side of the door and pressed his ear to hear. It sounded as though she were crying. He stood outside the bathroom, wanting to knock to see if she was okay, but he didn't. He let his hand run down the door before finally making his way down the hallway into his father's room.

After her shower, Cherish walked out of the bathroom and noticed Justin wasn't in his room. She walked over to the chair and grabbed up her jacket and keys and was about to head towards the stairs when she saw him come around the corner out of his dad's room, pulling his shirt over his head, the muscles on his stomach briefly exposed.

"You're going home barefoot?" he asked looking down at her feet.

"There's no way I'm putting on my shoes, she pointed towards the trashcan.

Justin looked over towards the garbage can and then down in shame. "I think I may have some flip flops in my closet that I left here. Come on while I check."

Cherish reluctantly followed him back into the room and stood by the door watching him rifle through his closet.

"You need to remember to go shopping later." She said. "Your dad's refrigerator is empty."

"Yeah I had a list of things I needed to do after the bar, but as you can see," He handed her a pair of flip flops. " I didn't make it far."

Cherish slid her feet into the oversized flip flops and then adjusted the drawstrings on the sweatpants so that they wouldn't fall down. "I'll make sure I get these back to you after I wash them."

"Keep em'. I've always liked the way my clothes looked on you."

"I'll make sure you get them back." she insisted.

He walked her out and over to her car. "Do I need to get your car detailed?"

"No. Thank God!" She laughed. "Cause if you would have barfed in here, I would've made you buy me a new motherfucking car!"

"Such a filthy mouth on such a beautiful girl."

"Yeah but you always loved that about me." She grinned, not realizing what she'd said till it was too late.

"Always have…Always will." He smiled leaning his arms against her door. "Do you think we could get together later? Have a drink?"

Cherish shot him a look, making him chuckle slightly.

"No alcohol…Just a cup of coffee or something? Maybe catch up?" he asked.

Cherish nervously bit her bottom lip, "I don't know."

She flinched slightly when he reached in and moved her wet hair away from her face. "I really don't want to leave town with you thinking that I've turned into a pill popping drunk, Cherish. Please?"

"I'll think about it," She reached down and turned the key in the ignition. "You want a ride to go and get your car?"

Justin could sense her apprehension when she asked. "I've taken advantage of your pity enough for one day. I'll walk over there later and get it…This way you can give me an answer about that cup of coffee."

He backed up and watched her as she pulled off down the street. Cherish could see him in the rear view mirror, standing there barefoot in the middle of the street in a pair of sweats and his wife beater with his hands on his hips. He had a small smile on his face as if he were looking forward to seeing her later. A small glimmer of hope in his eyes. She couldn't keep herself from smiling. He did that to her. He was the only person who could. He had a knack for making her angry one minute and in love with him the next. But she couldn't still have feelings for him. He'd broken her heart. There was no way she still loved him…Was there?

**CHAPTER MUSIC:**

Don't You Want Me? ~ Human League


	5. Chapter 5

**_- October 1996_**

It was dusk and the sun was swiftly setting on the horizon. Cherish could no longer see the road or even the path leading into the woods. It was growing darker by the second and she was growing anxious with every step they took further. She carefully moved the tree branch from her path as she tried to keep up with her best friend. "Are you sure we are going the right way, Caroline? We're not even on the path anymore."

"Yeah. Trace told me it was on the other side of the drop off at the Lake. We're close. Trust me."

As they walked further they could hear voices in the distance and Cherish could smell the scent of burning wood. She was too busy looking down, watching where she was going to notice the flickering of flames ahead of them. As they came into the clearing, Cherish noticed a bunch of four wheelers parked close together. "Hey ya'll!" Caroline shouted.

Cherish looked up and could see the group of ten or so teenagers huddled around a small bonfire in the middle of the clearing.

"Finally!" Trace yelled out to her. "You wanna beer?"

Caroline walked over and grabbed the two beers out of Trace's hand and went and handed one to Cherish. She reluctantly took it, wondering to herself how Trace was always able to get alcohol. Cherish would have rather stayed in and watched movies all night, but her friend insisted that they go meet up with some of the kids from school. Caroline had a crush on Trace's friend Brian, so anywhere he was going to be, she was surely going to find a way to be there too.

The two girls made their way around to the other side of the fire, greeting everyone as they searched for somewhere to sit. Caroline spotted Brian and made a B-line towards him. Cherish followed behind her. She could see Justin sitting near Brian with two girls on his right who hanging on his every word. She rolled her eyes. She had heard stories about Justin when she first moved to Boone...The town's golden boy, who was just as great with the ladies as he was on the basketball court. Bouncing from girl to girl just as often as he dribbled a ball. She tried not to let the rumors ruin her first impression of him. Especially after he was so nice to her when they had first met. But apparently the nicer he was, the more his friends ragged on him about it.

Cherish wasn't used to people sticking their nose up at her. Back in New York, she never had to worry about people not liking her because she was smart. She was more worried about not being smart enough to compete with everyone else. Here in Boone, it seemed like the smarter you were, the less "_people_" liked you. "_People_" mostly being the jocks of the school. She got along fine with everyone else and was pleasantly surprised at how welcoming people were once they actually got a chance to know her. But with the jocks, it was like they were scared that her intellect was contagious and that it was, god forbid, going to rub off on them or something. They weren't mean or hateful towards her. But they weren't outgoing or knocking down her door to get to know her either.

In New York it was all about how much money you had or who your family was. Her father had been one of the top ranking surgeons at New York Presbyterian Hospital, so she never had a problem making acquaintances. But friends, true friends...Those were few and far between. In the city, friendships seemed to be disposable. And if you weren't considered to be a part of the elite, then you were pretty much left alone.

"Hey, Caroline! There's room over here by us!" Brian called out to her.

She grabbed Cherish's arm and walked over and sat down on a log with him. Cherish stood there awkwardly looking around for a different place to sit, but the only other spot left was between Caroline and Justin. "JT, move over so Cherish can sit down."

Justin looked up at her and scooted down slightly. He seemed just as annoyed as she did that they had to sit next to each other. The two of them had bumped heads over the summer. Cherish, Caroline, and Jennifer were out at the basketball courts with all the rest of the local teens watching the guys play and instead of cheering on Justin's team like everyone else was doing, Cherish ended up cheering on the opposing team instead. She was far from soft spoken, so there was no way anyone on the court or in the stands wouldn't be able to hear her cheers and jeers. When the opposing team started to gain some points, Justin became frustrated and decided to take it out on Cherish. He made a smart remark about the fact that she should stick to what she knew best and go home and open a book. Cherish didn't take too kindly to him trying to be an asshole to her in front of his friends. She retorted back stating that he needed to learn how _real_ ball was played because what he was doing wasn't anything compared to what she saw on the streets of New York. He ended up calling her a stuck up rich bitch and they hadn't been on good terms since.

Justin had tried to apologize to her on many occasions, but Cherish wasn't willing to forgive and forget. The worst thing he could have done was try to make her seem like the rich snobs that she loathed back in New York. From that day on, anytime that Cherish would see Justin, she was always cordial with him, but that same smile he loved seeing on her face when she greeted him in the past had vanished. He knew he had been an ass, but he hated the fact that the girl he was trying so hard to impress was cheering on a bunch of losers. The guys on the team had been encouraging him all summer to start dating some of the older girls from school. Especially a few cheerleaders in particular. They didn't really spark his interest the way Cherish did. But since he was on the team, he had to keep up appearances if he planned to stay in the teams good graces. Trace was the only one who knew how much he secretly liked Cherish.

Justin sat and watched Cherish through the corner of his eye as he sipped his beer and pretended to listen to Debbie Wilson tell him about a costume party that she was planning on having for Halloween. Cherish's back was slightly turned away from him as she sat talking to Caroline and Brian. "...Well?" Debbie asked him.

"Well what?" Justin asked looking over towards her.

The busty blonde was clearly annoyed at the fact that he wasn't paying attention to her. "I asked you what you were doing after you leave here."

Cherish sat there taking small sips of her beer. She could hear Justin talking to Debbie about his plans for later on that night. For lack of a better term, Debbie was a complete and utter slut and Cherish knew that Justin would probably jump on the opportunity to get what he could from her.

"Alright…Let's play truth or torture." Trace said after a while.

"Truth or Torture" was basically a variant of "Truth or Dare." The timeless game that innocent and not so innocent teens loved to play to with their friends, or folks who weren't quite their friends, so they can find out little facts about each other or see just how far one was willing to go to impress the crowd. Trace had been brutal with his questions. He'd asked everything from "Where did you lose your virginity?" to "Have you ever got a boner somewhere inappropriate?" His "tortures" were just as bad. He had made Billy Marshall lick Debbie's entire face and Ryan Winters had to get a squeaky clean wedgie for 30 seconds.

"...Okay. Who's next?" Trace looked around the group. "Cherish! Truth or torture?"

"Truth." she replied before taking a sip of her beer.

"Have you ever…" He paused to think of his next question, but judging by the smirk on his face Cherish had a feeling that he already knew what he wanted to ask her. "Have you ever skinny dipped?"

"No" she stated simply.

"Oooh, You're lyin'!" Caroline chanted. "We went skinny dipping right over there in Millers Lake this past summer!"

Justin started choking on his beer and Debbie tried patting him on the back to help. "Caroline!" Cherish scolded, her face turning red from all the laughter and stares.

"Ah, you gotta suffer the torture now, Cherish!" Trace laughed. He sat there for a moment trying to figure out what he should make her do. "I'd make your ass skinny dip again, but its too cold for all that shit. How about…"

There was that pause again. And Cherish already knew that Trace was going to make her do something gross like lick the bottom of someone's stinky, nasty feet. "I dare you to…" Trace looked around the bonfire acting as if he were making a hard decision and with a crooked grin formed on his face he said "...Kiss Timberlake."

"What?" Justin and Cherish asked in unison.

"You have to kiss Timberlake. that's your torture for lying."

"What kind of torture is that?" Debbie jealously interjected.

"It'd _totally_ be torture for Ms. Stuck-up Rich Bitch. Right, Justin?" Justin shot his friend a look.

"You're a troll. And there's no way I'm kissing him." Cherish shook her head.

"You gotta do it." Brian teased. "Or we'll never let you live this down. Ever!"

Cherish knew that Brian was right. Once these country bumpkins decided to do something, they always followed through. Even Caroline was getting in on the action. Cherish couldn't believe it! "Yeah, Cher. Thems the rules!" she smiled.

"Fine." she mumbled before turning towards Justin who was glaring over at his best friend. Cherish reached into her pocket and pulled out a piece of gum and began to chew it before looking up towards his face and asking, "You ready?"

"I guess." he shrugged his shoulders.

Cherish could feel the warmth of her cheeks as she looked up at Justin. He gave her an apologetic look, his face turning red with embarrassment. She slowly leaned her face up towards his and he instinctively moved in closer. They were both staring at each others lips as they inched closer to one another. She watched his tongue dart out as he wet his lips. She ran her tongue along her own lips, before she gently brushed her mouth up against his bottom lip, sending a jolt down his spine. Justin moved his mouth up slightly, brushing them against her top lip, lingering there for a moment, still staring down at her lips and then into her eyes. Cherish had to force herself to back away. She kept reminding herself that this was the same Neanderthal who called her a bitch over the summer. She pulled her head back and avoided Justin's gaze, quickly turning her head back towards Trace and asking, "Happy?"

"What the fuck kinda kiss was that? I've kiss my mother longer than that!" He objected.

"You sure you wanna go around admitting that?" Justin asked, making everyone including Cherish, laugh.

"Fuck you." Trace said, flipping him the bird. "We want a real kiss. None of this pecking shit! We wanna see a lip smacking, saliva swapping kiss…Let's go!"

Cherish could feel Caroline pushing her shoulder, guiding her back towards Justin. She looked back up at him. "Let's just get it over with," he sighed, setting his beer down on the ground. He rested his elbows against his thighs as he folded his hands together nervously.

Cherish nodded and leaned her head over to meet his once more. "Ready?" he whispered, his nose brushing hers slightly.

"Okay," she whispered back before Justin pressed his lips against hers. Cherish's breath caught in her throat. If she hadn't been gripping her bottle of beer so tightly, she would have reached out to touch him. She had an overwhelming urge to find out if his skin was as soft as his lips were. He was staring down at her again, his eyes questioning hers, but she couldn't make out what they were asking. She could barely hear everyone hooting and hollering at them. This had to be the reason why he had so many girlfriends. His lips felt like a heaven that she had never been to. Cherish tilted her head and massaged his lips with her own. Her eyes were slowly beginning to flutter shut when she heard Trace yell out, "Much better!"

Justin quickly pulled his lips away, wiping his bottom lip. Cherish scooted back over towards Caroline who whispered something into her ear, making her elbow her friend.

As it got later and later, more and more people started heading home. As they were about to leave Caroline whispered over to Cherish that she was going to go off with Brian for a little while and would meet her back at the house. Caroline didn't even give Cherish a chance to respond before she ran off and jumped onto the back of Brian's four wheeler. He had a small boombox hanging from the handle bar of the bike blasting Biggie's "One More Chance."

"How are you just gonna leave me?" Cherish called out to her friend who could barely hear her.

Trace and Jennifer had already taken off and everyone else had pretty much started walking back way ahead of Cherish. She looked back towards the clearing and could see Justin smoldering the fire with a bucket of water the guys had gathered from the lake earlier. Debbie was still hanging around but she eventually started heading off in the opposite direction with two of her friends. Cherish was almost tempted to follow Debbie out so that she wouldn't get lost but decided to see if she could catch up with Bobby, Ryan and a few girls from school. She made her way through the woods, following their voices the entire time, praying that she didn't get lost. When she made it back to the path, she breathed easier knowing that the road was only a few steps away. When she finally reached the road she could no longer hear or see Bobby and the others. She stood there for a moment deciding what she should do. Eventually she zipped up her jacket and began the long journey back home, praying that she wouldn't get mauled by an animal on the way there. Caroline would surely feel like a shitty friend if she did though.

A few minutes later she heard a four wheeler pulling up from behind and she moved closer to the side of the road to get out of the way. This was routine in Boone. If you didn't move they would surely make you move.

"You wanna ride back?" a voice asked.

Cherish turned her head and could see Justin inching his four wheeler down the road next to her. She looked over towards his bike apprehensively and shook her head. Ever since she saw Tommy Johnson flip over on one last summer, breaking two of his ribs and shattering his wrist, she vowed never to go near one. "No, that's okay. I'm just gonna walk."

"Are you sure…It's like two miles back to your house, Cherish."

"Yeah, I'll be fine." she nodded, turning her gaze towards the ground as she continued to walk.

"Positive?" he asked. "I don't mind taking you home. It's on the way to my house."

"That's okay." she stated firmly.

She was being stubborn, but she didn't care. As much as she enjoyed every second of his lips pressed against hers, she wasn't going to let him know it. She didn't want Justin to suddenly think that since they kissed, they were going to go back to being friends. No way!

She watched as he pulled off down the road. The sound of his four wheeler growing fainter and fainter and he disappeared further and further down the country road. Cherish walked another twenty minutes looking down at her feet so she wouldn't stumble for the tenth time over a tree branch or bump into a dead carcass on the side of the road. There were hardly any stars out and the moon was being covered by a blanket of clouds. She soon regretted telling Justin that she would be okay. She was anything but okay walking down the dark road, terrified by every sound she heard. She was out there alone in the dark with the cries of a million crickets, barely any lights illuminating the road, and howling noises coming from the woods.

Cherish tried to focus her attention onto something else to keep from freaking out. She thought back to the bonfire and how hard she laughed when Billy licked Debbie's face and she screamed. She thought about how soft Justin's lips felt against hers and how badly she wanted an opportunity to feel them again. She remembered the way he looked into her eyes and wondered what was running through his head. She thought about how relieved she was when she saw Debbie leave before him and- "Shit!" Cherish yelled. She grabbed her thigh and rubbed it, looking up to see what she had walked into. She was so lost in her own thoughts that she didn't even notice the four wheeler idling in front of her.

"I couldn't leave you out here alone." Justin said, leaning against the bike. "My momma taught me better than that."

Cherish smiled slightly, silently thanking God that Justin hadn't gone far. She quickly straightened up her face and tried to act aloof. "I told you I would be okay."

"Yeah I know." he smiled. "But you're stubborn sometimes."

"Stubborn?" she asked, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Yea…Stubborn." he smiled, mockingly crossing his arms over his chest as well. "Come on. Let me give you a ride home."

Cherish reluctantly crawled up onto the bike behind Justin. "Wrap your arms around my waist, so you don't fall off." he instructed.

Her hands were trembling and she inched them around his waist. Part of it was the fact that she had just been fantasizing about him just moments ago and the other part was that she was utterly terrified of being on the bike. Justin inched the bike up the road slowly, but Cherish soon yelled out, "No, wait! I can't! I can't!"

He stopped and she got off the bike. "You scared you're gonna fall off?" He asked "All you gotta do is hold on tight."

Embarrassed by her own fear she sheepishly looked down. "I'm sorry, Justin. I'm just too scared." she admitted nervously with a laugh.

"Here...How about you drive and I'll sit behind you? This way you can't fall off." he suggested.

She stood there for a moment before finally agreeing. Justin slid his butt to the back of the four wheeler and helped her up onto the seat. He walked her through the gears before he placed his hands on her hips moving her up slightly, so that she was closer to the handles. Cherish jumped at the touch of his hands on her body. He placed his hand gently overtop her left hand and rotated it forward slightly to move the bike. They started off slow down the road until Cherish felt more comfortable going faster. He let his chin rest against her shoulder and he talked her through it. He could see the smile on her face and she started to relax more and enjoy the ride. God she smelled so good, he thought to himself. Her hands were so soft and her hair gently tickled the side of his neck as the breeze hit them. With every bump they hit on the road, he inched his body in towards hers more, wanting to be closer to her. He secretly wished she would slow down. He wanted the ride home to take just a little bit longer, so that he could spend a little more time with her. But she never slowed down.

As they made their way into her enormous circular driveway, Cherish drove them up onto the grass and around to the far side of the large Tudor style house. Justin noticed a set of stairs that led up the a door on the second floor. He reached up, gently pressing his chest into her back and took in her scent one last time before turning off the bike. She climbed off and giddily jumped up and down for a moment. "That was so much fun!" she smiled.

He'd missed that smile. It had been almost four months since she last smiled at him like that. "I told you, city girl. You just gotta trust me."

Cherish glared at him and was about to speak but got lost in his eyes. God his eyes! They were like these great blue oceans that she wanted to look into forever. She had completely forgotten what she was going to say. There was only silence as the two gazed at one another. Justin leaned down against the handles of the bike and chuckled lightly to himself.

"Well…I better get going." Cherish pointed her thumb back towards the house. "Thanks again for the ride home" she said before walking towards the house. She turned around and smiled at him once again and added. "And the driving lesson!"

Justin jumped off the bike and skipped towards her, "Wait I'll walk you to the door."

"Oh that's okay…My room's right there." she pointed up the stairs. "Whole side of the house is pretty much mine."

"Okay, well I will walk you to _this_ door." he smile putting his hand out in front of them for her to walk ahead of him.

They reached the door and stood there awkwardly, not knowing what to say. "See you Monday, I guess."

"Yeah." he nodded, biting at his bottom lip.

She had inched her way into the door when Justin called after her. "Cherish…"

"Hmm?"

"You think you might want to hang out sometime? Outside of school, I mean."

"Aren't you dating that Junior? Sarah something or another?"

"No! We broke up before school started."

"Well...I don't know. Maybe."

"Maybe?" his voice quivered slightly. "Did you not...I mean...Was it awkward having to kiss me?" he asked nervously, shoving his hands down into his jean pockets. "I'm really sorry about that. I'll have to murder Trace when I see him."

Was the confident and cocky Justin Timberlake unsure of himself, she wondered. It was almost too much for her to take. "No need to kill the troll just yet. It didn't feel awkward, but...You stole my gum." she laughed.

Justin leaned his face in closer towards her, smiling widely. "Oh. Well do you want it back?"

Cherish nodded, her smile growing wider as he closed the distance between them, pressing thier lips together. Her lips felt like silk as they grazed his. He took his hand out of his pocket and placed it on her chin, pressing gently on her jaw to part her teeth. He angled his head to deepen their kiss. Cherish gripped the door handle and wall tightly, her legs growing weak from their kiss. She could hear movement inside and feared that her dad was coming to check on her. She reluctantly pulled away.

Justin smiled, placing his hand back down into his pocket. He looked up at her nervously and asked, "Will I see you at church tomorrow?"

"This will be the first time that I am actually looking forward to it." she smiled back, lightly chewing on the piece of gum he slipped back into her mouth during their kiss. "Goodnight."

"Night." he smiled before turning and making his way down the steps.

Cherish closed the door slowly, moving the curtain to the side to look out at him one last time. She turned and leaned her body against the door, shutting her eyes tightly and letting out a silent scream as she hopped up and down in excitement. A perfect ending to an almost perfect evening.

She locked the door and walked from her small sitting room into her bedroom, smiling to herself.

"Where have you been?" Caroline asked lifting her head from the bed, already in her pajamas.

"I see you're back early, bitch!" Cherish laughed as she went and jumped onto the bed next to her friend. "That's what you get for ditching me for some guy."

"He wanted to do more than just kiss, so I made him bring me back," Caroline pouted pulling the blanket up over her shoulder and adjusting her head on the pillow.

Cherish rested her head on her friends shoulder, looking towards the television at Julia Roberts and Kyra Sedgwick laying in bed talking about men. "Caroline...If he only wants you for one thing, then he's not worth it."

"I know...I'm sorry I ditched you." she said, turning her body to face her friend and noticing the smile plastered on Cherish's face. "Why are you so giddy right now?"

* * *

Cherish slowly opened her eyes and looked towards the television. "Something to Talk About" was on and she could see Julia Roberts apologizing profusely to Dennis Quaid who was in the backseat puking his lungs out. She could hear her cell phone buzzing against the night stand. She had tried to ignore it, but whoever it was would not stop calling.

She covered her eyes, blocking the sun out of her face and blindly reached her arm over feeling around for her phone. "Hello?" she answered. "...Oh hi...Yes I will be over at around two. I didn't forget." she lied, turning her wrist so she could see what time it was. "...Don't worry. I'll be there. Bye."

Cherish dropped her cell phone down onto the bed and ran her hands over her face. It was about noon and all she wanted to do was crawl underneath the sheets and sleep for a day. Her head was pounding, her back and neck were throbbing and her heart was aching. Cherish resolved to grab a half hour's worth of sleep before she would get up and begin the tasks that laid ahead of her that day.

* * *

"What are you playing at, man?"

Justin handed the clerk a hundred dollar bill out of his wallet, propping his cell phone between his ear and his shoulder. "What do you mean, T? I'm not up to anything. I came into town to check on my father."

He could hear his friend sigh on the other end of the line. "Don't try and bullshit a bullshitter...Especially when he's known you all your life. You're up to something. So spill it."

**CHAPTER MUSIC:**

_One More Chance ~ The Notorious B.I.G._


End file.
